The Ravens go into Cleveland for the first AFC North game of the season carrying a familiar problem: Lamar Jackson won’t be there again. That leaves Baltimore trying to win with Tyler Huntley under center, and the path is pretty clear if the Ravens can make life miserable for an injured Browns front.
The easiest place to start is on the ground. Cleveland’s run defense has opened the 2026 season as a bottom-10 unit, a sharp drop from the kind of group Jim Schwartz usually fields.
The damage has only gotten worse with Mike Hall, Mason Graham, and Kalia Davis all dealing with injuries. Hall and Davis are out for Sunday, and Graham looks likely to join them after the Browns elevated two defensive tackles from their practice squad.
Even if Graham ends up playing, he won’t be close to full strength.
That sets up a strong opportunity for Baltimore to lean on Derrick Henry and keep working the edges and the middle. The Ravens just used that formula against a Falcons defense that entered Week 5 leading the league against the run, attacking away from its strength and putting pressure on an injured edge.
That approach helped take some of the burden off Baltimore’s banged-up, shuffled offensive line. Declan Doyle should still have Henry running plenty of outside carries, but the Browns’ injuries make between-the-tackles runs feel a lot more realistic.
Huntley could also be part of the ground plan. He seemed to have room against Atlanta while Henry was drawing attention, but the Ravens rarely let him keep it.
With Cleveland’s linebackers likely sliding inside to help the weakened line, that could open even more space for Huntley on the perimeter.
The Browns may also try to make Huntley uncomfortable in a different way than Atlanta did. The Falcons were content to rush four, drop into coverage, and force him into short throws, and for stretches that worked.
Huntley’s hesitations, the drops, and the penalties kept Baltimore from stacking together long drives. Cleveland, though, should have a different answer.
Head coach Todd Monken knows Huntley well from his time in Baltimore, and that includes what he does not do well. The Ravens try to give Huntley clean, simple reads and easy completions to mask an arm and release that are less than ideal.
That makes press coverage a logical choice for Cleveland, along with defenders sitting underneath to jump quick answers and hot reads. If Huntley is going to beat that, he’ll need to be sharp.
Baltimore’s defense has a chance to shape the game just as much as the offense. The Browns’ run game has had its own problems, and Quinshon Judkins is entering the game with an ankle injury. If the Ravens can handle early downs, they should be able to force the situation they want most and the one that has given them trouble already this year: third-and-long.
That’s where things got messy in Atlanta. Baltimore repeatedly shut down Bijan Robinson and still ended up facing long-yardage snaps, only for Michael Penix to keep converting beyond the sticks.
The rush wasn’t finishing, and coverage was breaking down after a few seconds. The Falcons kept escaping the Ravens’ best work on first and second down and extending drives anyway.
Trey Hendrickson coming back helps a lot. He is the Ravens’ best individual pass rusher, and in his first three games he showed real timing with the line games Baltimore likes to use.
That part has been missing over the last two weeks, even though Mike Green and Nnamdi Madubuike have both made a major impact on their own. On the obvious passing downs, Jesse Minter can turn loose his pressure packages, but the whole front has to do its part by setting picks and creating lanes for pressure.
Cleveland leads the league with an 11.3% sack rate, which could tempt the Ravens to keep extra bodies in coverage and play more conservatively up front. Even so, Deshaun Watson’s 24.1% pressure-to-sack ratio is among the worst in the league, so Minter should still have plenty of reason to send blitzes and force Watson into holding the ball.
And if Baltimore can get off the field and stay ahead, turnovers could decide how comfortable this one feels. The Ravens saw in Atlanta how fast a game can flip: the Falcons’ early fumble-return touchdown put Baltimore in chase mode for most of the night, before Kyle Hamilton’s overtime interception finally ended it.
Hamilton understands better than anyone how important it is to finish those plays. He has dropped several interceptions in his career, including one against the Browns in 2024 that would have won the game. Instead, it went through his hands and Cleveland won on a late score.
This year has looked different. Hamilton has already forced and recovered a fumble himself, and last week he added the interception.
The rest of the defense needs to cash in on those chances too. Extra possessions and shorter fields would give Baltimore a real chance to build an early cushion and let Huntley and Henry grind down the clock from there.
In Other News...
Ravens Finally Get A Real Test For Their Big Pass Rush Bet
Trey Hendricksons return gives Baltimores pass rush a chance to prove it can be more than just a weekly talking point. After missing the past two games with a finger injury, Hendrickson is expected back as the Ravens prepare for a Cleveland offense that has been on shaky footing up front and has put its quarterback under plenty of pressure already this season.
The Browns have been sliding into a matchup that could tell the Ravens a lot about where their edge rush really stands. Deshaun Watson has absorbed a heavy workload of hits behind that line, and Baltimore will be watching closely to see whether Hendrickson can immediately add force to a front that has been built to change games at the line of scrimmage. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens Week Just Got More Interesting With Browns Trade Buzz
The AFC North picture got a little more complicated this week as Cleveland heads into a Week 6 meeting with Baltimore at 3-2 and trying to steady itself after a loss to the Jets. At the same time, reports have tied the Browns to Philadelphia Eagles guard Landon Dickerson, one of the more notable names floating around in the early trade chatter as teams start to eye possible line help.
For the Ravens, any move that strengthens a division opponent is worth watching closely, especially with Cleveland already trying to regroup in the middle of the season. Dickersons status has been part of the conversation because of the Eagles recent struggles, but nothing official has happened yet, which leaves Baltimore waiting to see whether a familiar divisional matchup gets a little tougher before the week is over. [Read more 🡒]
Derrick Henry Could Be Set Up For A Huge Ravens Breakout
A familiar division matchup suddenly looks a little softer up front for Baltimore, with Cleveland entering Week 6 carrying real uncertainty on three defensive players who could shape the way the game is played. Mason Graham, Carson Schwesinger and Derek Barnett are all listed as questionable after each was limited to just one practice this week, and that kind of availability cloud can matter a lot when a defense is trying to hold up against a physical Ravens offense.
For Derrick Henry and Baltimores running game, the potential ripple effect is easy to see. Graham and Schwesinger would matter especially inside, while Barnetts status impacts the edge, and any combination of those absences could make life more comfortable for the Ravens as they try to lean on the ground game and control the tempo. [Read more 🡒]